


Just to Love

by rhaellas



Category: A Quiet Place (2018)
Genre: Comfort/Angst, F/M, John Krasinski Hate Club, Not Canon Compliant, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:26:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22321033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhaellas/pseuds/rhaellas
Summary: After the lost of his son, Lee feels lost. Hopeless. Until Evelyn drags him back to the light and shows him the real meaning of parenthood.
Relationships: Evelyn Abbott/Lee Abbott
Comments: 3
Kudos: 16





	Just to Love

**Author's Note:**

> After seeing the the trailer for A Quiet Place Two and much force from Twitter, here’s a sweet one-shot that’s way too sad for my liking and could very well be canon. I also need to preface that whenever there is dialogue in the story the characters are signing, not speaking. I never mentioned if she was pregnant or not, so you can place this one-shot wherever you think (if you think) it fits in the film. Anyways, enjoy.

Lee paced quietly down the thick path of sand, his heart irregularly beating while his rough calloused hands shook to its beat. He stopped himself quickly, blowing a quiet breath out through his nose and squeezing his eyes shut.

There was only a short wave of fear that washed over him, the thought of a creature creeping out through the dark woods or the open fields, however it was quickly taken over by something else. Whether it was the broken man in him not caring what was to happen to himself or the father in him that ( even without a weapon by his side ) wants to get revenge on the creature that took away his son, he couldn’t say. Whatever it was, it matter.

Almost as quickly as it came upon him, all of the unease and rage left his body and was replaced by its anguish. The agonizing thoughts pestering him of how he could have done better. Hidden the rocket. Kept the batteries himself. Watched him walk out the store.  Ran quicker.  The list went on, seeming to never end.

The torturous memory of that day replayed in his head, even now as he walked down the sandy path. The day it all went wrong.

Lee is still not quite sure how long they all stayed on the bridge. Frozen in place. It wasn’t like he could cry, scream, call out for his son as a way to comfort him in his last moments. Not say goodbye. All that his body would let him do in that moment was stare at the rocket and collapse to the patch of sand under his feet. He never wanted to leave, to go home without his son in his arms. Evelyn had to nearly drag him off the ground to make him leave. 

That night was when Evelyn started sleeping with the kids, feeling as if she couldn’t let them out of her grasp without something happening to the two of them. She can’t leave them:  she’s scared , as is he. He never follow behind them, instead he found his legs taking him outside, walking along the sand to pass the time while he drowned in his sorrow until the sun shined on their home again.

Lee looked around as he reminisced, wondering if he’d truly lost his mind this time. Perhaps when he lost Beau some sanity and self-preservation had been lost in the process, because his children and his wife were the only thing keeping him balanced, and his death had gone and pushed Lee past the point of clarity.

As he sat down on the porch of their house, facing the field rather than their barn to avoid the parts of the wood that would creak under his weight, he believed it to be so: he  had lost his mind. Now that initial pain and loss had grown; it had claws and fangs and was devouring him from the inside, demanding to scream and cry and grieve in ways that were impossible with the condition of their silent world.

Lee bit back a groan, his head now resting in his hands as he sat, feeling lost. Until he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, the soft touch warming his skin through the fabric of his shirt. He had been out there long enough for so many nights to have a justification if either of the three of them had found him. But he them turned to look for the source of the warmth and realized he couldn’t say  anything , all the poor man could do was look.

Even still, in a world full of pain and anguish, where the only way to survive is silence and trepidation, Evelyn Abbott looked like a vision. Heaven sent, even. Blonde hair now glowing as it flowed down her shoulders, soft pale skin glistening from the moonlight struck her perfectly and those bright ocean eyes, haunting his dreams since the day they met. Once so light and full of happiness now dark and broken, now gazing down at him with sadness.

She didn’t do anything at first. Possibly she was waiting for him to make the first move, he couldn’t say. Eventually the hand resting on his shoulder gave it a small squeeze, wordlessly ushering him to stand up. 

Lee complied, their gazes still focused on the other as he stood in front of her, now him being the one looking down at her. Maybe that’s what she was waiting for, he thought, watching her move her hand away from his shoulder and by her side.

‘We have to stop. We can’t take care of them like this. Beau wouldn’t ... ‘ She stopped, her hands staying still as her gaze diverted to the wooden floor beneath them. Lee could see her pain clearly, even the way she signed his name had a saddened expression. Before he could comfort her, she continued. ‘He wouldn’t want to see us broken like this.’

She was right. She always was. After that day on the bridge, the two of them had grown apart. Not because they wanted to, that’s just the way things went. The two of them are different people, they grieve in different ways and have different responsibilities. It wasn’t like they had arguments, they just became distant from each other. Lee from everyone.

Snapping him out of his gaze, Evelyn grabbed both of his hands and stepped closer. ‘We have to  stop .’ She signed again, each word sharper than one before it. 

‘I know, I know, but,’ Lee assured her, his hands reaching to hold her own as he closed tired eyes. ‘I just can’t stop. He’s ... he’s always here.’

He felt Evelyn come closer to him, her hands resting on his chest as her eyes searched for his which were still gazing at the floor. ‘What do I do?’ He asked her, not wanting to hide his grief anymore.

Once he looked up at her, her sad, tired eyes mirroring his own. ‘I don’t know, I don’t think anyone does. But I know you can’t blame yourself.’ Lee would have laughed in a scoff under different circumstances, having already convinced himself the death of his son was his fault. Beau was his liability.

Lee went to turn away but she grabbed his hand, pulling him against her chest. Giving all of his energy to the hug, his head finding comfort in the crook of her neck as his arms wrapped around her waist.

As her arms enveloped his strong form tightly, he started to feel safe. Warm.  Calm . Her arms felt strong around him, warm hands rubbing the small of his back while soft lips pressed a kiss on his temple. 

Evelyn held his cheeks with her warm hands and he pulled back to look up at her, seeing understanding in her beautiful eyes. Of course, she would understand. Beau was her son just as much as his. 

Even though he knew his feelings were normal, any parent who loses a child mourns, his heart still sank to his feet whenever he thought of his son.

‘A father’s job is to protect his children.’

His words made Evelyn smile, the same motherly smile he’s seen her use to when comforting their children. Closing her eyes and shaking her head she grabbed his hands, stopping him from signing any further, from making himself a fool.

‘No. It’s just to love.’

Lee delicately dragged his hands up and cupped her face, feeling her lean into touch. His eyes now relaxed and gazed into her own. ‘Remind me how I ever thought to doubt your judgement.‘

‘No more thinking,’ Evelyn returned kindly, the pad of her thumb delicately tracing his lip and rested her nose against his nose. ‘I only want to think about going to bed.’

Lee stifled a chuckle, his hand lacing with hers as they didn’t say anything for the rest of the night. Rather than going to bed, the two of them got comfortable on the side of the porch.

They held each other to forget. Forget the world, the creatures, the tears, the tragedy that nearly broke their family apart. 

But it wasn’t an attempt to wipe the memory of their son away. Not simply for protection. She held because she loved him, and he loved her. More than words could say.

**Author's Note:**

> Did I use a Walking Dead quote? Yes, yes I did. Big thanks to Ella, Grace, and Lys for forcing me to write this. Greatly Appreciated. Also follow me on Twitter ( @bluntfilms ) since I need that self promo. Please leave suggestions or things I wrote wrong because I’m illiterate. Thanks.


End file.
